Federal News

Farm Bill Conference Meeting CommencesCongress came back in session in early September following district and state work periods. One of their first orders of business was the first Farm Bill conference committee meeting. Nine senators and 47 House lawmakers will participate. Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) last week announced progress had been made on some of the bill’s 12 titles, including language related to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program, also referred to as food stamps – one of the legislation’s most contentious issues. House and Senate conferees will work to reconcile differences in the two bills, passed earlier this summer, before the current Farm Bill expires September 30, 2018.Work is also progressing on multiple appropriations bills ahead of the end of the fiscal year on September 30. The Senate recently passed its version of the USDA-FDA appropriations bill, which would authorize nearly $122 billion in mandatory spending and more than $23 billion in discretionary spending. The House Appropriations Committee in May passed its version of the legislation, but it still awaits floor consideration and a full chamber vote.Tax Cuts 2.0 Coming SoonTax Cuts 2.0 is finally making way in the House. Ways and Means Committee Chair Kevin Brady (R-TX) released one-pagers on the three main areas of focus in the second round of tax cuts: creating permanency for individual tax provisions, increasing savings for families, and driving entrepreneurial innovation by allowing companies to write off more of their startup costs. Chairman Brady has been participating in listening sessions on tax reform 2.0 throughout the course of summer. It is highly unlikely that this second round of tax cuts will be considered in the Senate, given the current political makeup.

Trade and Regulatory Issues

Trump Announces NAFTA Deal with MexicoIn early September, President Trump announced that the U.S. had reached a preliminary bilateral North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) deal with Mexico, and he subsequently notified Congress of his intent to sign a trade deal with or without Canada in 90 days. A trilateral deal between the three countries was supposed to be met by September 1 in order for the U.S. International Trade Commission to conduct an economic analysis in time for Mexico’s President to sign the agreement before leaving office in November. However, there is some wiggle room and it is still possible that a trilateral deal with Canada will be made. Canadian negotiators have been in Washington, D.C. discussing contentious issues such as dairy markets and a cultural services exemption. President Trump asserted during a discussion with Republican leaders that the U.S. and Canada should be striking a trade deal, but it is still unclear if it will occur.

USTR Finalizes Second Round of China TariffsStarting August 23, the U.S. started imposing additional 25 percent tariffs on approximately $16 billion worth of Chinese imports, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced. The tariffs target Chinese imports containing industrially-significant technologies, including those related to the country’s “Made in China 2025” industrial policy. USTR amended the list, which now contains 279 of the originally proposed 284 tariff lines, following a comment period and two-day public hearing in July. The tariffs are in response to findings from an investigation into China’s industrial and intellectual property policies under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. The U.S. on July 6 levied additional 25 percent tariffs on 818 Chinese imports worth about $34 billion in response to the same investigation.A formal notice of the $16 billion tariff action will soon be published in the Federal Register. The notice will announce a process by which interested parties may request the exclusion of products covered by a tariff line subject to the additional duties.The administration is also considering imposing 25 percent tariffs on a separate list of Chinese imports valued at approximately $200 billion. China, in turn, announced it would retaliate with tariffs ranging from five to 25 percent on $60 billion of U.S. imports, including a range of U.S. hides and skins products, to the country should the U.S. move ahead with levying tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports.

FDA Issues Guidance Documents on Food Facility RegistrationThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued two guidance documents to help food facilities meet their registration requirements under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. FDA published the seventh edition of a guidance document explaining registration requirements for owners and operators of facilities that manufacture, process, pack or hold food for human or animal consumption in the U.S. The guidance document features questions and answers regarding amendments to its regulations for registering food facilities to comply with new registration provisions established by the Food Safety Modernization Act.FDA also released a supplemental draft guidance document clarifying the registration requirements in situations when multiple entities use shared physical space. These situations include instances when manufacturers lease their facility, store food at self-storage warehouses or use commercial communal kitchens that are also used by other manufacturers to process food. FDA intends to incorporate the questions and answers in this supplemental draft guidance into future editions of the food facility registration guidance.